capital markets and securities law

Our capital markets and securities practice provides a full range of services in advising underwriters, issuers and purchasers in both public and private securities offerings. These offerings involve debt, equity and combinations thereof in certain instances.

The scope of work includes advising on transactions such as:

• initial public offerings (IPOs);
• secondary public offerings;
• bond issues;
• private placements;
• rights offers; and
• compliance with ongoing obligations in terms of the listings requirements of the JSE Securities Exchange South Africa.

Our role in capital markets transactions includes acting as South African counsel for both issuers and underwriters for cross-border transactions.

We are also a market leader in innovative black economic empowerment transactions.

recent transactions

• Acted for Metorex in its R3 billion capital and debt restructuring programme, which involves a fresh equity capital injection of R744 million, a bridging finance facility of R300 million and a restructuring of the approximately R2 billion of current debt in relation to its Congo operations.
  
  
• Acting as the South African legal advisors to Goldman Sachs, UBS and Morgan Stanley as underwriters to a rights offer by AngloGold Ashanti. Deal value: R13.8 billion.
  
  
• Advised Goldman Sachs and UBS as joint bookrunners in the disposal by Anglo American of more than 20% of its shareholding in AngloGold Ashanti. Deal value: R19.89 billion.
  
  
• Demerger of Hulamin from Tongaat Hullet and subsequent listing of Hulamin on the JSE. Deal value: R8.5 billion
  
  
• Advised Credit Suisse as international selling agent of the underwriter in the IPO of Celtel Zambia that valued the company at US$1 billion. Deal value: US$200 million.
  
  
• Advised Standard Bank of South Africa on the issue and sale of US$355 million Tier 2 notes in the United States as a private placement.
  

Our strength in this practice area lies in the strong relationships which we have developed over the years with the leading international investment banks like UBS, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse First Boston, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley.